System and method for providing location information service using mobile code

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for providing a location information service using a mobile code in a Mobile Station (MS) are provided. The method includes obtaining a mobile code scanned by an input device of the MS; acquiring location information if the location information is included in the obtained mobile code; matching coordinates of the acquired location information on a first cyber map in the MS if cyber map information corresponding to the coordinates of the acquired location information is included in the first cyber map in the MS; and if the cyber map information corresponding to the coordinates of the acquired location information is not included in the first cyber map in the MS, updating the first cyber map with cyber map information corresponding to coordinates of corresponding location information obtained from a second cyber map in a server and matching the acquired location information on the updated first cyber map.

PRIORITY

This application is a Continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.12/557,093, which was filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office onSep. 10, 2009, the entire content of which is incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to offering a locationinformation service, and more particularly, to a system and methodcapable of providing location information using mobile codes, withoutusing radio signals for positioning (or position measurement), such asGlobal Positioning System (GPS) signals.

2. Description of the Related Art

Mobile communication systems have evolved to provide not only voiceservices but also a variety of additional services differentiated fromthe voice services. Profits of communication service providers thatprovide only the voice services have already been limited by marketsaturation. Therefore, the communication service providers are seekingnew profit opportunities by providing a variety of additional servicesdifferentiated from the voice services, such as, Location Based Service(LBS) services, which are based on location information of MobileStations (MSs). LBS services provide user-requested additionalapplication services by combining location information of moving usersor vehicles with a variety of other information in real time. Therefore,acquisition of the location information is one of the important factorsin providing the LBS services. Originally, LBS services were used bylarge distribution companies to track their vehicles and their freights.Recently, however, LBS services are being extended to include servicesfor the general public, such as Find-a-Person, Real-Time TrafficInformation, Weather Information at a user's current location, etc.

The location information is the contents of locations of actualgeographical features and objects on the surface of the earth, which arerepresented using a predetermined method such as a Global PositioningSystem (GPS) scheme and a network scheme that provides locationinformation of MSs. In the GPS scheme, a radio navigation system formeasuring accurate positions, velocities and times of objects on thesurface of the earth using satellites, measures arrival times of wavesby receiving satellite signals transmitted from the satellites, andcalculates locations of users based on the measured times. The networkscheme provides location information of MSs using Base Stations (BSs)and/or Relay Stations (RSs) in Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)communication systems or Global System for Mobile communication (GSM)communication systems.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of providing an LBS serviceby acquiring location information using the conventional GPS scheme andthe conventional network scheme.

Referring to FIG. 1, in order to acquire desired location information,an MS with a built-in GPS module can determine a distance betweensatellites and its user by calculating arrival times of signalstransmitted from the satellites, and an MS without a built-in GPS modulecan provide an LBS service based upon the Cell Identifications(Cell-IDs) of cells managed by BSs or RSs currently serving the MS. Inorder to acquire more detailed and precise location information,triangulation may be performed using signals transmitted from three ormore BSs or RSs.

However, the GPS-based and network-based location schemes can onlyprovide limited personal location information. GPS-based locationinformation can be precisely calculated, but this precise information islimited to MSs with a GPS function, which requires GPS hardware.Further, the GPS scheme is unavailable within in a room or a building.In addition, because an accuracy of the network-based locationinformation falls within several hundred meters through severalkilometers due to a difference between a user and BSs or RSs in terms ofthe time and radio signals, accurate location information of the user ora service such as path guidance cannot be provided, and therefore,accuracy of the network scheme is subject to significant changesdepending on the location of the user.

Therefore, there is a need for a technology capable of providinglocation information services by extracting precise location informationwithout using measurement values calculated by radio signals forposition measurement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of the present invention is to address at least theabove-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at leastthe advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the presentinvention provides an apparatus and method capable of preciselydetecting location information of a user, without using measurementvalues determined by radio signals such as GPS signals or networksignals.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided amethod for providing a location information service using a mobile codein a Mobile Station (MS). The method includes obtaining a mobile codescanned by an input device of the MS; acquiring location information ifthe location information is included in the obtained mobile code;matching coordinates of the acquired location information on a firstcyber map in the MS if cyber map information corresponding to thecoordinates of the acquired location information is included in thefirst cyber map in the MS; and if the cyber map informationcorresponding to the coordinates of the acquired location information isnot included in the first cyber map in the MS, updating the first cybermap with cyber map information corresponding to coordinates ofcorresponding location information obtained from a second cyber map in aserver and matching the acquired location information on the updatedfirst cyber map.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is providedan apparatus for providing a location information service using a mobilecode. The apparatus includes a code reading module for obtaining amobile code scanned by an input device of the MS; a code decoding modulefor acquiring location information if the location information isincluded in the obtained mobile code; and a location management modulefor matching coordinates of the acquired location information on a firstcyber map in the MS if cyber map information corresponding to thecoordinates of the acquired location information is included in thefirst cyber map in the MS, wherein if the cyber map informationcorresponding to the coordinates of the acquired location information isnot included in the first cyber map in the MS, the location managementmodule updates the first cyber map with cyber map informationcorresponding to coordinates of corresponding location informationobtained from a second cyber map in a server and matching the acquiredlocation information on the updated first cyber map.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of certainembodiments of the present invention will be more apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of providing an LBS service by acquiringlocation information using the conventional GPS scheme and networkscheme;

FIG. 2 illustrates examples different types of mobile codes to which thepresent invention is applicable;

FIG. 3 illustrates internal structures of a device for detectinglocation information and a server according to an embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 4 illustrates a procedure for providing location information usingmobile codes according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Throughout the drawings, the same drawing reference numerals will beunderstood to refer to the same elements, features and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The matters defined in the description such as a detailed constructionand elements are provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding ofembodiments of the invention. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill inthe art will recognize that various changes and modifications of theembodiments described herein can be made without departing from thescope and spirit of the invention. Also, descriptions of well-knownfunctions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.

FIG. 2 illustrates examples of different types of mobile codes to whichthe present invention is applicable. A mobile code includes specificinformation therein, or includes Uniform Resource Identifier (URI)information to facilitate an access to a specific service. Afterscanning the mobile code having such information with an input devicesuch as a digital camera or a code reader, a user may extract theinformation and display the extracted information, or may access theextracted URI and received information provided at the URI.

For example, if a user desires to purchase goods, the user may use aninput device to scan a mobile code that stores detailed information onthe goods and an address of a web site where the user can purchase thegoods. Thereafter, the user may check the information about the goods inthe connected web site, and may further decide purchase to the goods.

Such a mobile code can be used mainly for web download, Short MessageService (SMS)/E-mail transfer, automatic dialing, business cards, etc.For example, when a user is interested in purchasing goods, the user mayscan, using an input device, a mobile code that stores detailedinformation about the goods and a URI of a web site where the user canpurchase the goods. Thereafter, the user may check the information aboutthe goods in the connected web site, and may further decide to purchasethe goods. For example, if a user uses an MS to scan a mobile code thatis printed on a business card of a certain person and stores a phonenumber and an E-mail address of the certain person, the MS mayautomatically dial the phone number or send an E-mail to the person. Inaddition, by storing an identifier including location information in themobile code, which can store a variety of information, it is possible toprovide location information of an object associated with the mobilecode.

FIG. 3 illustrates internal structures of a device for detectinglocation information and a server according to an embodiment of thepresent invention, in which the device may correspond to an MS and theserver may correspond to a BS that communicates with the MS.

Referring to FIG. 3, a device 31 for detecting location informationaccording to an embodiment of the present invention includes a codereading module 301, a code decoding module 305, a location managementmodule 307, a path calculation module 309, a memory 311, a displaymodule 303, and a communication management module 310. The memory 311includes a location search table 306 and a cyber map 308.

In the device 31, the code reading module 301 reads a mobile code fromthe exterior. A code reader may be used to read a one-Dimensional (1D)code, while a digital camera module generally mounted in an MS may beused to read a two-Dimensional (2D) code. The code decoding module 305extracts text and number information stored in the read code providedfrom the code reading module 301. The code decoding module 305 canextract an identifier or information including numbers, text, etc. fromthe read mobile code, and may directly extract location information, iflocation information is stored in the mobile code. The locationmanagement module 307, a module for acquiring actual locationinformation using the identifier acquired from the mobile code, acquiresthe actual location information in cooperation with the location searchtable 306 and the cyber map 308 in the memory 311.

The path calculation module 309 calculates a path between two pointswhen the user's current location information and destination locationinformation are mapped on the cyber map 308. The location search table306 is a module for mapping locations corresponding to identifiers ofacquired mobile codes, and if locations corresponding to acquired mobilecodes are not stored in the device 31, the device 31 can receive, from anetwork server 33, a location search table 325 stored in the networkserver 33. The display module 303 displays information of the device 31for the user, and the communication management module 310 connects withthe server 33 to facilitate transmission/reception of necessaryinformation when communication is performed between the device 31 andthe server 33.

In the server 33, a communication management module 319 connects withthe device 31 to enable transmission/reception of necessary informationwhen the server 33 communicates with the device 31. A locationmanagement module 321 acquires actual location information using anidentifier acquired from a mobile code when a location informationrequest message is received from the device 31. The location managementmodule 321 acquires actual location information in association with thelocation search table 325 and a cyber map 327 in a memory 323. Thememory 323 in the server 33, which performs similar functions as thememory 311, transmits, to the device 31, location informationcorresponding to an identifier the user desires to locate, when thelocation information for the desired identifier does not exist in thememory 311 of the device 31. A procedure for providing locationinformation using the above structures will be described below.

FIG. 4 illustrates a procedure for providing location information usingmobile codes according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, in step 401, an input device of an MS reads amobile code to acquire desired location information. The input device ofthe MS can be a camera module mounted in the MS, a code reader thatexclusively reads mobile codes, or another similar device.

Using the mobile code read in step 401, the MS determines whetherdesired location information or an identifier from which the locationinformation can be acquired is stored in the mobile code read by the MS,in step 403. If location information of a specific location or buildingcorresponding to the read mobile code, in addition to the identifier, isstored in the mobile code, the MS directly proceeds to step 413 withoutdetecting location information using the identifier, according to aselection of the user. In step 413, the MS can acquire locationinformation by mapping the location information on a cyber map in theMS. However, if only the identifier, but not the location information,is stored in the read mobile code, or if the user selects theidentifier, the MS acquires identifier information by analyzing thestored identifier in step 405.

In step 407, is the MS determines whether the identifier information ofthe mobile code, which is analyzed in step 405, is information includedin a location search table of the MS. For example, information on aspecific point, building, or shop corresponding to the identifierinformation is acquired, and is the MS determines whether the acquiredinformation is information included in the location search table of theMS. If the identifier information is included in the location searchtable of the MS, exact location information corresponding to thelocation of the identifier can be acquired by detecting accuratelocation information from the location search table. The locationinformation can be represented by predefined horizontal and verticaldistances from a specific place and/or by the floor of the building.Further, the moving distance and coordinate information can berepresented in the location information by using information such as alatitude, a longitude, and an altitude.

If the identifier information is not included in the location searchtable of the MS, the MS accesses a server and downloads datacorresponding to the location information of the identifier from alocation search table in the server in step 409. Thereafter, in step411, the MS can acquire accurate location information corresponding tothe current location of the identifier by updating the data downloadedfrom the server in its location search table.

The acquired location information is mapped on the cyber map in the MSand displayed in steps 413 and 415. If the map information correspondingto the acquired location information is also not stored in the MS, theMS may access the server, download map information corresponding to thelocation information from a cyber map in the server, update the cybermap of the MS using the downloaded map information, and display theupdated cyber map after mapping.

The user can acquire location information from the current location tothe destination by calculating a moving distance and a path by using thedestination location information and the current location informationdetermined through the above process.

In this manner, the MS can be provided with information on a locationthe user desires to find, through the process of FIG. 4, without usingvalues determined by measuring radio signals for position measurement,such as GPS signals or network signals. The user of the MS can find thedesired location in various ways using such location information. Thiswill be described below by way of example only.

If the user's current location is already known, the user can go to thedestination by using the MS to analyze an identifier of a mobile codefrom which location information of the destination can be obtained. Theidentifier stored in the mobile code is used to obtain locationinformation of the destination as described in FIG. 4, and the locationinformation can be represented by a latitude, a longitude, an altitude,and/or other predefined information on the cyber map, which represents apertinent place. For example, the location information can berepresented by a distance from a well-known building and the floor ofthe building. For the goods that a user desires to purchase, additionalinformation representing features of the goods and an identifier fromwhich displayed location information can be obtained are stored in amobile code corresponding to the goods, so that the user can selectivelycheck the additional information and the displayed location informationfrom the identifier stored in the mobile code using the MS. The user canconveniently move to the place where the goods are displayed, based onthe displayed location information included in the identifier inaccordance with the method illustrated in FIG. 4.

However, when the user does not have information about the place wherehe is presently located, the user should first check locationinformation of the current place, and then search for a path by findinglocation information of the destination. This function can be veryconvenient in congested shopping malls. For example, upon acquiringinformation that the goods the user wants is in a department A of aspecific shopping mall, the user goes to the shopping mall and uses theMS to read a mobile code corresponding to the department A. As mobilecodes corresponding to respective departments are generally printed on aguide map at the entrance of the shopping mall, the user can easily finda mobile code for the desired department. The MS can acquire locationinformation of the destination as described in FIG. 4 by reading themobile code for the department A and analyzing an identifier from themobile code of the department A, from which the location information canbe obtained. Next, the user can instruct the MS to store, as the currentlocation information, the location information acquired by analyzing anidentifier of a mobile code for the nearest department, calculate a pathto the destination, and go to the department A.

Also, the MS may acquire destination information from an identifier ofspecific goods in a shopping mall, acquire the current locationinformation by reading a mobile code of another goods displayed aroundthe user, and re-calculate the path, thereby enabling the user to go tothe department where the specific goods are displayed.

If the user wants to determine whether he is on the right path to thedestination, the user can use the MS to re-acquire the current locationinformation using an identifier of a mobile code for the goods displayedaround the user or in a nearby department, re-calculate the path. Then,the user can continue towards the desired destination.

As is apparent from the foregoing description, according to embodimentsof the present invention, an MS can acquire desired location informationusing an identifier of a mobile code. Even when a user wants additionalinformation apart from location information of a specific building orgoods, the MS can transmit information on an identifier of a mobile codefor the building or goods to a server along with a request for theadditional information desired by the user, and receive datacorresponding to the desired additional information from the server,thereby acquiring the additional information.

In conclusion, an MS with a recognition device such as a digital cameracan acquire precise current location information by providing a personalnavigation service without using measurement values determined by radiosignals such as GPS signals or network signals.

While a system and method for providing a location information serviceusing a mobile code has been shown and described with reference to acertain embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled inthe art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as definedby the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing a location informationservice using a mobile code in a Mobile Station (MS), comprising:obtaining a mobile code scanned by an input device of the MS; acquiringlocation information if the location information is included in theobtained mobile code; matching coordinates of the acquired locationinformation on a first cyber map in the MS if cyber map informationcorresponding to the coordinates of the acquired location information isincluded in the first cyber map in the MS; and updating, if the cybermap information corresponding to the coordinates of the acquiredlocation information is not included in the first cyber map in the MS,the first cyber map with cyber map information corresponding tocoordinates of corresponding location information obtained from a secondcyber map in a server and matching the acquired location information onthe updated first cyber map, wherein the location information includedin the obtained mobile code is in the form of a text or a picture. 2.The method of claim 1, further comprises: extracting identifierinformation from the obtained mobile code if the location information isnot included in the obtained mobile code; determining whether theextracted identifier information corresponds to other information thatwas stored in the MS; and acquiring, upon a determination that theidentifier information corresponds to the other information stored inthe MS, location information indicating a location associated with themobile code according to the other information stored in the MScorresponding to the identifier information.
 3. The method of claim 2,wherein determining whether the extracted identifier informationcorresponds to the other information that was stored in the MS comprisesdetermining whether the identifier information is included in a locationsearch table of the MS, and wherein acquiring the location informationcomprises: upon a determination that the location information isincluded in the location search table of the MS, acquiring the locationinformation of the identifier information to match the identifierinformation on the first cyber map in the MS, when the identifierinformation is included in the location search table of the MS, and upona determination that the identifier is not included in the locationsearch table of the MS, transmitting the identifier information to theserver and acquiring the location information by downloading locationinformation corresponding to the identifier information from the server.4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: sending the identifierinformation to the server along with a request for additionalinformation corresponding to the identifier information; and acquiringthe additional information from the server.
 5. The method of claim 1,further comprises: displaying the matched first cyber map on an outputdevice of the MS; and calculating a moving distance and a path using atleast one location corresponding to the acquired location information.6. The method of claim 5, wherein calculating the moving distance andthe path comprises: calculating the moving distance and the path usingthe at least one location corresponding to the acquired locationinformation using a path calculation module in the MS; and displayingthe calculated moving distance and the calculated path on the firstcyber map.
 7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: wheninformation representing a current location is to be updated while themobile terminal searches for a location along a path displayed on theMS, scanning a mobile code of a nearest building or goods and settinglocation information acquired using an identifier included in the mobilecode as the current location information; and re-calculating the movingdistance and the path using the set current location information andpreviously stored destination location information.
 8. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the location information included in the obtainedmobile code includes a latitude, a longitude, and an altitude, whichrepresent a desired location.
 9. An apparatus for providing a locationinformation service using a mobile code in a Mobile Station (MS),comprising: a code reading module for obtaining a mobile code scanned byan input device of the MS; a code decoding module for acquiring locationinformation if the location information is included in the obtainedmobile code; and a location management module for matching coordinatesof the acquired location information on a first cyber map in the MS ifcyber map information corresponding to the coordinates of the acquiredlocation information is included in the first cyber map in the MS,wherein if the cyber map information corresponding to the coordinates ofthe acquired location information is not included in the first cyber mapin the MS, the location management module updates the first cyber mapwith cyber map information corresponding to coordinates of correspondinglocation information obtained from a second cyber map in a server andmatching the acquired location information on the updated first cybermap, wherein the location information included in the obtained mobilecode is in the form of a text or a picture.
 10. The apparatus of claim9, wherein the code decoding module extracts identifier information fromthe obtained mobile code if the location information is not included inthe obtained mobile code, and the location management module determineswhether the extracted identifier information corresponds to otherinformation that was stored in the MS, and acquires, upon adetermination that the identifier information corresponds to the otherinformation stored in the MS, location information indicating a locationassociated with the mobile code according to the other informationstored in the MS corresponding to the identifier information.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 10, wherein the location management module determineswhether the identifier information is included in a location searchtable of the MS, and acquires, upon a determination that the locationinformation is included in the location search table of the MS, thelocation information of the identifier information to match theidentifier information on the first cyber map in the MS, when theidentifier information is included in the location search table of theMS, and wherein the location management module transmits, upon adetermination that the identifier is not included in the location searchtable of the MS, the identifier information to the server and acquiresthe location information by downloading location informationcorresponding to the identifier information from the server.
 12. Theapparatus of claim 11, wherein the location management module sends theidentifier information to the server along with a request for additionalinformation corresponding to the identifier information, and acquiresthe additional information from the server.
 13. The apparatus of claim9, further comprising: a display module for displaying the matched firstcyber map on an output device of the MS; and a path calculation modulefor calculating a moving distance and a path using at least one locationcorresponding to the acquired location information.
 14. The apparatus ofclaim 13, wherein the path calculation module calculates the movingdistance and the path using the at least one location corresponding tothe acquired location information using a path calculation module in theMS, and the display module displays the calculated moving distance andthe calculated path on the first cyber map.
 15. The apparatus of claim9, wherein when information representing a current location is to beupdated while the mobile terminal searches for a location along a pathdisplayed on the MS, a mobile code of a nearest building or goods isscanned and location information acquired using an identifier includedin the mobile code is set as the current location information, andwherein the path calculation module re-calculates the moving distanceand the path using the set current location information and previouslystored destination location information.
 16. The apparatus of claim 9,wherein the location information included in the obtained mobile codeincludes a latitude, a longitude, and an altitude, which represent adesired location.